Xue Vang, 20, right, credits his English language learner teacher Shannon Charbarneau with helping him complete his high school studies in three years.

Written by

Four years ago, when most of his classmates were starting their freshman years at Wausau West High School, Xue Vang was languishing in a Thai detention center.

Now age 20, Vang will graduate from Wausau West on Wednesday, and he has been accepted to attend the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the fall. It has been a long path, but Vang has used a work ethic and natural intellect to find his way.

Vang and his parents and siblings lived as illegal aliens in Thailand between 2002 and 2006, when they were arrested and detained by Thai authorities. Originally from Laos, they fled the communist ...